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Tuesday, December 27, 2016
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CLEVELAND – Kyrie Irving made a fadeaway jumper over Klay Thompson with 3.4 seconds left as the Cavaliers rallied just the way they did in historic fashion last June in the NBA Finals, beating Golden State, 109-108, on Sunday.
The Cavaliers trailed by 14 points, 94-80, early in the fourth quarter before rallying before a rowdy Christmas crowd. And as was the case in the Finals, it was Irving, who made a three-pointer in the final minute of Game 7, who made the biggest basket.
Golden State had one last chance but Kevin Durant lost his balance while coming off a screen and couldn’t get off a shot as time expired.
LeBron James had 31 points Irving scored 25 for the Cavs, who were down 3-1 in last season’s Finals before winning three in a row and the championship – the first for a Cleveland team since 1964.
Durant, making his first appearance in the league’s hottest rivalry, scored 36 and Thompson had 24 for the Warriors, who had their seven-game winning streak stopped.
The Cavs couldn’t quite catch the Warriors until James gave Cleveland a 105-103 lead – its first since the opening quarter – with a monstrous dunk that he celebrated by swinging on the rim like a kid at recess.
Stephen Curry’s three-pointer with 1:14 left put the Warriors up by three, but Irving scored on a layup and Cleveland shut down Golden State on the defensive end, forcing a 24-second violation.
Following a timeout, Irving dribbled deep into the lane and hit his off-balance shot over Thompson.
The Warriors set up a game-winning chance for Durant, but he stumbled with pressure applied by Richard Jefferson and fell to the floor and watched helplessly as Cleveland’s fans roared and Cavs coach Tyronn Lue clapped and screamed.
The teams will meet again on Jan. 16 and then not again unless they make it back to the Finals – a “three-quel” that would be the first in league history.
“Just to get back here and for them to get back to our place, a lot of things have to go right,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
The Cavaliers played their third game without starting guard JR Smith, who will miss three months after undergoing surgery on a broken right thumb. (AP)
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